10 Thing I Wish I’d Known

Being new to business is tough. You essentially decide “Yeaaaaa I’m gunna rock this XYZ” and bam you’re in business. But then you find yourself asking the question “what heck do you do after I say yeaaa I’m gunna rock this XYZ”? That’s how my first business story went and I can tell you i’ve worked with a number of others who have very similar if not the same stories.

Aside from learning particular businesses strategies, or developing my own when I decided to launch my own business, there were a few things I wish someone had pulled me aside and said:

“look, here are some tips to make your biz life a bit easier”.

1. Don’t Worry About The Little Stuff -I openly admit I am OCD when it comes to many aspects of my life; my business life is no different in this respect. I am 100% hands on and for a long time felt that if I didn’t do it myself it couldn’t be done properly. Boy was that not correct! You can delegate tasks out to others, fivver is a great site to find inexpensive help, and it can be done just as well and it’s something off your plate. The small stuff isn’t worth spending HOURS & HOURS on if there is someone far more qualified who can do it in 1/16th of the time you can. Logo designs are my down fall, so it’s a project that has been delegated out! Rather than me spending days or weeks trying to “web design” something for myself I have let someone else take the reigns on that project so I don’t have to “sweat” over it.

2. It Takes Time – I can remember starting in my first business watching others around me make it big for themselves. I thought “Oooo yea, get in, talk to some peeps, make the monies, and be awesome” YEAAAAAAAAAA soooo thats not exactly how it happens. What you don’t see a LOT of times from the “Big Names” you follow is all the behind the scenes work they do, all the late night/early morning hours they log, all the tears they cried, all the netflix binging they went without. It takes time to build a name for yourself and your business but it CAN happen for you. The process requires patience, focus, and determination, but you WILL get there!

3. Never Give Up – It’s going to be hard, you’re going to hit a brick wall, you’re going to have ups and deep deep downs. But when you maintain your persistence it pays off ten fold. No really it does! It seems impossible sometimes, without a doubt. There were a number of days before and definitely after having the little guy where I said “i’m done, I’m quitting, Im throwing in the towel because this is impossible” But I’m not sure if it was pure laziness or subconscious determination I kept going and it has only continued to be beneficial. The “never give up” concept was something I stumbled upon but its a lesson I continue to live by today!

4. SAY NO – You’re going to get busy. Your business is going to grow to heights you probably never imagined. With the growth more will come your way that requires your attention, thoughts, input, work, etc. The secret to this is… you do NOT have to say YES to everything that comes your way! Seriously! When your business grows you’re going to have people ask you to speak to their people, when you are doing well you may be approached with book deals, you may be asked to do collaboration after collaboration, but you have the ability to say no; and you should from time to time. While it is a blessing to be seen as the “IT” person, it can also be quite taxing on you and your business. It is hard to say no sometimes but I assure you it benefits you tremendously in the long run.

5. Deep Breath (again and again) –I will openly admit that I stink at taking breaks, cutting myself slack, or just relaxing. The thing is, it’s necessary in order to stay mentally stable and properly functioning in your business. Your business can get pretty hectic and busy now and again. It’s important to make sure you are caring for yourself so that you can properly continue to care for those you’re helping. Take a deep breathe, relax, and give yourself the freedom to know it’s ok to take you time.

6. It’s Ok To Fail – No matter how hard you work, no matter how perfect what you offer is, no matter how expert your knowledge is on your topic there will be situations where you set out to do something and you fail. THAT’S OK! It’s totally ok to fail so long as you get back up after you’ve dresses your emotional wounds. Failing means that you have found a way that didn’t work and it’s time to create a way that will work. Failure means you’ve learned an important lesson for your future. Failure makes for a stronger business foundation in the future. You WILL fail but thats OK!

7. Stay Fresh – I’m talking about your businesses appearance here. I started my business, designed one photo, stuck with one font, and decided I was done and i’d just run my business. What I didn’t realize was that, over time, my website-group-social media sites- etc. started to look outdated and boring. Its important to keep up the look of your sites, make your content is fresh, and continue to keep the community you’ve set out to build engaged with your best foot forward.

8. Get a Biz Bestie NOW -When you get stuck on a project, when your doubting your ideas, when you’ve hit a brick wall, it helps tremendously to talk through what you’re working on with someone else. Your go to biz person doesn’t need to be in the same business as you, their business doesn’t even need to align with yours, they just need to be a person who can give you honest feed back, support you when you need it, and someone who you can bounce ideas off of. GET A BIZ BESTIE!

9. Be You – You have no doubt read a story that went viral on social media and thought “man, I could do that”. The thing is many people take that as a personal challenge, when trying to grow their businesses, and will then create content that may not fully represent them or their business in an effort to “WOW” their audience. The thing is, those who pay attention to you, those who invest in you, those who put their trust in you are doing just that.. they are trusting in you to be honest. Don’t ever lie your way to the top, don’t create a story or struggle in order to capture the hearts and minds of your audience. Rather, be authentically you and I assure you that you will succeed and be far more appreciated for it.

10. Never Stop Learning -Personal development books, trainings, webinars, seminars, etc. DO THEM! You will be better able to handle anything that comes your way when you are continually learning and growing as a person and as a business. Whenever you come up against a big hurdle there is someone who has reach that hurdle before and can help get you through it. Continue to learn even when you feel you are the expert on your topic. If you want some PD Book Suggestions check out my top 10 Favorites –> 10 MUST READ BUSINESS BOOKS